


Hymn to the Sea

by lovelyairi



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Classism, Homophobia, M/M, RMS Titanic, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-17
Updated: 2018-04-17
Packaged: 2019-04-24 09:17:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14352516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelyairi/pseuds/lovelyairi
Summary: A Third Class singer finds the eyes of a First Class business man





	Hymn to the Sea

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by the movie The Titanic   
> I've always really loved this movie and I was overwhelmed with feelings while listening to the soundtrack so I wanted to write about it  
> This will take me awhile, not going to lie to you  
> I am excited for this tho so I will be actively working on it, it will be split into 4 chapters maybe? One for each day  
> I'm doing quite a bit of general research on this for attempted accuracy LOL so that's why it'll take me a bit, thank you for always being patient with me!

Kyungsoo jolts from his sleep and he frantically rubs his face in an attempt to wake himself up quicker as he glances at the clock hanging on the wall. His eyes take a moment to focus and a habitual squint appears on his face. He lets out a sigh of relief when he sees that it is currently 9:42AM, meaning he had more than enough time to get his things together. Today was going to the start of his new life he thinks, today will change everything.

Although, possibly his life had begun to change a week prior when he decided to audition for a local band that had been given the opportunity to travel on the RMS Titanic. Yes, today was the day that the infamous RMS Titanic would be leaving its port for a voyage across the sea and Kyungsoo had been blessed with the chance to travel upon it as a member of the band. Said band had been looking for a replacement vocalist since their current one was down with the flu and was in no condition to travel, let alone sing.

It had all been a coincidence really, Kyungsoo had been on his way home from the market and he just so happened to see the sign. Without thinking twice he entered the small warehouse where there was a number of other people waiting in line for their turn. When Kyungsoo asked why there was so much interest he was told that this band would be performing nightly on none other than the RMS Titanic itself. 

Kyungsoo did his best that day, honestly he’s not sure he’s ever sung like that before and thankfully he was received well enough that the band had immediately sent everyone home, dead set on choosing him. Kyungsoo was given his boarding ticket as well as a pat on the back before being sent home with butterflies in his stomach and a wide grin on his face. He finally had the first step towards his dreams.

He gets out of bed and tiptoes to the washroom, relieving himself before he washes his face and brushes his teeth. He showered last night so he was looking quite presentable. Kyungsoo hurries back to his small room and dresses in a classic white shirt and khakis, finishing off with his trusty suspenders. He grabs his duffle bag and begins to stuff all of his belongings inside. He didn’t have much, considering he was renting a small room in a humble home but he made sure to take everything.

His hands reach for an old framed photo last, his heart pouring with emotion as he looks at the old image of him and his mother. He smiles and presses a kiss upon the glass before he lovingly places it inside of his bag, zipping it up before he swings it over his shoulder. For his mother as well as himself, he would achieve his dreams of being a Broadway actor. He’d been ridiculed since he was a teenager, telling him that it was virtually impossible but he never stopped dreaming. He would prove all of those people wrong and he would be the first Korean American on Broadway.

Determined, Kyungsoo double checks whether he has all of his things or not before he takes one last look at his bedroom that served as a home for the past 5 years ever since his mother died when he was 15 years old. Kyungsoo heads down the narrow staircase and his aunt is already sat at the dining table, a sullen look on her old face as smoke danced around her. She doesn’t acknowledge him as usual and Kyungsoo can only bow for all of the years she has sheltered him.

“You’ll regret it, America did nothing for my sister and it will do nothing for you,” she says in her heavy accent and Kyungsoo keeps silent. This was how he lived with her. Remaining quiet and obedient, living separate lives that had no reason to mingle. He smiles and places his hands on hers, he hopes that she doesn’t notice how he’s trembling because he too has fears that he’ll end up homeless in the cold streets of New York. 

But he has to take this chance. 

“Thank you so much, for everything,” Kyungsoo stresses his words hoping that they’ll pierce the walls surrounding her heart. His aunt sighs as she stabs her unfinished cigarette into the full ashtray sitting on the dining table. She then looks at him with eyes he’d never seen so bright, Kyungsoo is almost taken aback when she lightly squeezes his hands back, a quirk of a smile on her chapped lips.

“Take care of yourself Kyungsoo,” his aunt whispers before she lets go and turns away like nothing had happened. Kyungsoo feels his heart swell and he bows once more before he exits the small house. He takes a deep breath, inhaling the breeze and soaking in the sunlight before he makes his way down the bustling streets. His eyes are up to the sky and there is a skip in his step as he follows the crowd towards the port. 

Considering Kyungsoo wasn’t a very tall man, maneuvering between swarms of people was a talent of his. There was tons of people making their way towards the port and truthfully Kyungsoo wanted to get there quickly, his veins were thrumming with excitement. As soon as the ship comes into sight, he is absolutely mesmerized. Someone bumping into his backside was what reminded him to continue walking, otherwise he’d have been standing there in awe.

Squeezing his way through people standing around in the large area in front of the ship was the hard part. It wasn’t a moving crowd at that point since some people were only there to see off their loved ones. Kyungsoo grunts as he weaves his way between a bigger man and a fancy car, apologizing underneath his breath when he accidentally brushes against someone wearing a very expensive suit.

Kyungsoo doesn’t turn back and he prays that no damage was done before he finally spots the worn sign that read, “Health Inspection”. He nods to the man dressed in a white shirt and blue blazer with two rows of golden buttons on his abdomen, he has a sailor’s cap on that matches his thick mustache perfectly. Kyungsoo weaves his way through the roped line and he waits patiently to be inspected. 

The line in front of him surprisingly isn’t that long and he was expecting much more people to be crammed in here with him, then again he guessed not everyone would follow the rules so dutifully. As Kyungsoo is looking around he feels eyes on him so he looks down instinctively only to see the bright brown eyes of a young girl with golden curls. She looks at him with wonder that he can’t quite place but he does his best to give her a smile.

The little girl’s eyes widen ever so slightly before she returns the expression, his heart melts when he sees how her eyes mould into lovely crescent shapes, her pink tongue showing through her missing front teeth. Kyungsoo watches as her mother pulls her to another man in the same uniform and he looks away when the inspection begins to respect their privacy. He shifts on the balls of his feet as he waits with squinted eyes, regretting not having brought a hat with him. 

“Next!” The man standing at the end of the small quarantined area meets his gaze and gestures for him to come forward. Kyungsoo does as he is told and he places his duffle bag down on the ground as he stays still for the man to comb through his hair in search of lice. He was pretty positive he was lice and disease free but of course it was a precaution. After all so many of their ancestors died while travelling on boats due to disease and the like. 

The man then motions for Kyungsoo to open his mouth and he does as he’s told, wincing when a warm popsicle stick sits on his tongue. The man prods for Kyungsoo to turn presumably at an angle where the light was shining into his face and within a second he’s done. The man gives Kyungsoo a pat on the back along with a tip of his hat and he gestures to the long ramps leading up to the doors of the ship.

“You can go aboard there, have a good day sir!” Kyungsoo smiles and with a bow of thanks he swings his duffle bag over his shoulder and makes his way to said ramps. He once again gets swept into the crowd but thankfully the area near the side of the ship was actually clear, for safety reasons he guesses. Kyungsoo can’t help but break into a jog but he slows on the ramp, the boards beneath him made him feel uneasy. 

Kyungsoo takes a deep breath as he looks up at the ship and he feels so small. The crowd was loud behind him, resembling that of a market and the people who were already aboard were waving to their loved ones from the top deck. Kyungsoo swallowed hard and when he looked forward he could see the crew members stood at the door waiting for him with raised eyebrows. His footsteps stutter as he propels himself forward and he hands over his ticket and ID with a trembling hand. 

“Mr. Kyungsoo Do? Welcome to Titanic,” the man grins at him and hands back his papers. Kyungsoo nods with a flutter in his stomach and he thanks the man quietly before he enters. The initial thing he notices is that there is an overwhelming smell of fresh paint and machinery. The halls are buzzing with people of all kinds, seeking their rooms. Kyungsoo turns left at the first doorway and he hesitates, unsure of where the E Deck was.

 

It wasn’t that hard to follow people who were dressed in browns and beiges however, no one of the First Class would be anywhere near the E Deck where Third Class resides. As Kyungsoo worms his way through a number of families he thinks of the deck above where everyone was saying farewell. He had no one to see so he decides not to go. Kyungsoo brightens up when he sees the golden letters screwed onto the wall reading E Deck. 

The ceiling was lower here, the hallways narrow and the floors a murky red. Every few metres there was a small round light hanging on the left side of the hallway near the ceiling. Kyungsoo searches for room 56 and he smiles when he finds it. The door is open so he walks right in, immediately noticing that there were two sets of bunk beds, each on either wall of the small room. In between was a toilet and above it a sink with a mirror atop. 

Kyungsoo sees that the room isn’t empty and is currently occupied by the other members of the band that he’d met the other day but was not introduced to. The man sitting on the lower bunk on the left side is who notices him first since the other two are getting their things together. Kyungsoo approaches with a smile and reaches for the large hand stretched out towards him, a part of him wonders where all of their instruments were.

“Hey Kyungsoo, you can take the bottom bunk there. This is Jared our pianist and that’s William who is our violinist, I’m Chanyeol the guitarist,” Chanyeol gestures to each person as he introduces them and he stands up to be more formal. Kyungsoo wishes he hadn’t because he’s tall, Jared and William are tall too which made him feel tiny. He nods and shakes Jared’s hand, looking into his blue eyes and admiring how his brown locks flowed down his face like a waterfall.

William on the other hand was muscular, Kyungsoo could tell from his firm grip. He had blonde hair and green eyes with tanned skin. Unlike Chanyeol and Jared he didn’t smile but Kyungsoo didn’t take it personally. He stands back from them both and looks over to the only bed that had no bag on it before tossing his own there. Kyungsoo sits down and he doesn’t know what to say. Chanyeol pulls out some sheet music from his bag and hands them over.

“Here, this is what we’ll be performing, do you know it?” Kyungsoo takes the papers gingerly and he lets his fingertips explore the worn sheets for a moment before he realizes that he’s focused on the wrong thing. He clears his throat and looks over the title and the words carefully, truthfully he’d never learned how to read music so he’d probably have to ask Chanyeol to teach him at some point. 

“Beautiful Dreamer by Stephen Foster,” Kyungsoo mumbles and he reads over the lyrics quietly. It seemed more like poetry than anything else, he couldn’t recall ever hearing a song like this but the name was familiar. Chanyeol smiles and begins humming as he points to the words on the sheets, Kyungsoo follows along with eyes widened in wonder.

“You won’t be expected to memorize it, but it helps if you get a feel of what the song is about,” William pipes up and he gestures to Jared who was now sitting on the bunk above Kyungsoo’s his long legs dangling. Jared jumps down and he straightens out his clothing before he grabs a hat seemingly out of nowhere and plops it onto his head,

“Chanyeol can explain it to you, he’s a romantic. We’re going to look around for a bit, do remember that we’ll be practicing at 2! We’ll meet up on the viewing deck,” Jared explains and within a second they’ve left the room. Chanyeol shakes his head and he leans back but his head hits the upper bunk so he points upward,

“Shall we sit up there and read together? Our instruments are all in one of the writing rooms on A Deck but I can sing the melody with you,” Chanyeol switches to fluent Korean and Kyungsoo smiles at the comfort of his mother tongue. It takes some time for him to pull himself onto the top bunk and he settles beside Chanyeol. When they sit beside each other like this Kyungsoo takes even more notice of their height difference.

“They say that Foster wrote this for someone he loved, someone who seemed so far from him since they always dreamed of the natural beauties of the world like the dewdrops or the moonlight,” Kyungsoo reads over the first verse carefully, he says nothing since he wants to hear more of what Chanyeol has to say. After all he wants to be able to convey this song properly in his own way.

“He talks about pulling this beautiful dreamer into his own world, reality of dreams ending once the sun has set. People have also said that this is about a man who fell in love with a delusional woman, wanting her to see reality where he was waiting for her,” Chanyeol says quietly and Kyungsoo frowns. That idea definitely wasn’t the more picturesque but it was realistic and Kyungsoo could appreciate realism.

“The original song has a very low tone, one that you even you can’t reach so we’ll have to raise it during our practice. Ah Kyungsoo, did you want to look around the ship as well? We don’t have to stay cooped up in here, it’s an easy song to get the hang of,” Chanyeol’s eyes twinkle with excitement and Kyungsoo can hear the herds of people passing by. The rumble of the ship makes the beds shake ever so slightly and Chanyeol holds onto his arm to keep him from falling.

“Looks like we’re finally heading out, we’ll wait till the ship is stabilized before we head out. Wouldn’t want you falling now,” Kyungsoo smiles when Chanyeol laughs, it’s a low sound, deep and rich. He finds he likes it quite a lot.   
  


Kyungsoo holds onto the white metal railings as he heads up the stairs and he feels his mood immediately brighten when the sun welcomes him, the fresh sea breeze blowing through his hair as he makes his way onto the observation deck. There are still a number of people outside, mostly children playing with each other while their parents lay around on the benches and soak in the sun. It seems that not many people are lingering by the gates that keep them safe from falling overboard, which was understandable.

“Wow, how are we already in open water?” Kyungsoo talks to himself as he skips over to the edge, his arms resting on the white gates as he looks over the side of the ship. The ocean seems so far down, foams of white trailing behind the ship that rips through the surface of the water. Kyungsoo looks at it in awe, his eyes falling closed as he listens to the wind and the water, his body warmed by the sun.

“They say that Titanic is meant to be as fast as they come and very quiet,” Chanyeol says and Kyungsoo hums in response. Not really having a reply when he has so much to take in with what was around him right now. In the heart of Southampton there was little to no nature, only buildings upon buildings lining cobblestone roads. Kyungsoo lived not too far from the dock, yet he never actually took the time to admire the ocean.

“Well it looks like somebody likes nature,” Chanyeol chuckles from behind him and Kyungsoo can feel him leaning on the railing as well, their elbows touching. Kyungsoo opens his eyes and he looks up at the sky, the sun is blinding considering noon had passed not too long ago but the sky was a clear blue. He truly was lucky to have stumbled upon the audition, otherwise he’d be back home hiding away in his bedroom as he dreamed and dreaded another day in the brewery.

“I just feel like I have to thank you Chanyeol, for this opportunity,” Kyungsoo leans on his arms as he smiles at his new friend. The other band members had been quite uninterested in the whole ordeal, whereas Chanyeol had been the one leading the auditions by asking questions and really getting to know the people. Kyungsoo had felt immediate resent from William he recalls, possibly the previous vocalist was someone dear to them.

“If it wasn’t for you we wouldn’t have been able to be here either so thank you,” Chanyeol returns the comment and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes with a smile. He turns around and hooks his arms over the bars as he looks around the ship. The deck itself was large, and it stretched out all the way to the bow of the ship. Kyungsoo would like to go there one day, but not right now because he feels he’d be overwhelmed. 

His eyes wander and he notices a bigger structure built in the middle of the deck. It leads up to another deck actually, much smaller but higher up than they were. Kyungsoo can see a number of people sitting around and chatting with one another, their hands covered by lace and leather, the fabrics on their bodies vibrant and expensive looking. No doubt that was where the First Class folk dwelled. 

Now, Kyungsoo had absolutely nothing against the First Class, it was more so what they had against him, anyone “below” them actually. Kyungsoo’s father had actually been a First Class gentleman, an heir to a bountiful mine his mother had told him. She’d been woo’d whilst working in a middle class bar and he’d taken her home that night, had his way with her in a consensual manner. 

However, the moment she told him that she was pregnant, he immediately cowered. Telling her that he needed to go off to America for business. Kyungsoo’s mother had then been sent money and letters presumably to keep her quiet about the whole ordeal. When she travelled there herself to live with him, she quickly realized that she’d been cast aside when another woman who was a few years older than her had answered the door. 

At that moment his mother had been heartbroken and stranded in a country she didn’t know. She’d resorted to blackmailing his father’s family for money so that she could return to the UK unscathed. After that she never looked for him again, and relied on her older sister when she was pregnant and in need of a family. When Kyungsoo was born, he was born with a mixture of parents’ features. 

His eyebrows and thick locks were his father's, his wide eyes and heart shaped lips a gift from his mother. Kyungsoo knew little to nothing about the man since no one ever wanted to talk about him, with good reason. Kyungsoo had no wishes to be rich, why be rich and lose hints of his humanity? He’d seen it, the way that the First Class folks looked at anyone below them like the filthiest of insects. Insignificant. 

“Kyungsoo, you should stop staring before she calls the guards or something,” Chanyeol mumbles and Kyungsoo blinks in surprise as he’s drawn away from his thoughts. Only then does he realize that he has been blatantly staring at a woman on the higher deck, her eyes dart from side to side, clearly uncomfortable. Kyungsoo looks down and his cheeks warm, how embarrassing. 

“It’s okay Kyungsoo, she was pretty wasn’t she?” Chanyeol teases and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes before he walks off to the other end of the deck. He couldn’t even remember what she looked like, her hair was maybe a very unnatural red? One he’s never seen before, and from afar her green eyes glowed in the sunlight. Okay maybe he lied, she was a beauty but she definitely wasn’t Kyungsoo’s type. He passes by a trio of men sitting on the benches near the stairwell and he notices one of them drawing a sketch of some kind. Pity how so many talented people never got to shine in this class driven world of theirs.

“Look, there’s Jared and William,” Kyungsoo clears his throat and he rushes towards the two who seem to be looking down at the water. Chanyeol arrives there quicker than he does, probably because of his long legs and Kyungsoo smiles awkwardly as he tries to ignore the glare that comes from William. Maybe he just had a naturally intense gaze. Kind of like how Kyungsoo unconsciously glares sometimes because his eyesight isn’t the best. 

“We should head to the practice room now, we’re set to perform at 6PM,” Chanyeol switches back to flawless English and Kyungsoo can only follow the band members who walk before him. His hands shake and he clasps them together, this wasn’t the time for stage fright.  
  


Kyungsoo doesn’t feel so well. He felt suffocated in his suit and he hates himself for not packing something more luxurious. Not that he had anything anyhow, this was a second hand suit that he’d been allowed to buy when he was finished with his primary studies. Beside Chanyeol, William and Jared he felt small and in no ways as stunning as they did. Hell, they could pass as First Class gentlemen if they so pleased, while Kyungsoo was clearly trying to fit in.

“We only have to perform one song, afterwards Kyungsoo you can head back and do what you’d like. The rest of us will have to stay and play music for the duration of the dinner,” Chanyeol explains quietly and Kyungsoo doesn’t have any arguments for that. They only practiced one song after all, and no one wanted to hear singing when they had things to talk about, like their money. 

Kyungsoo keeps his head low as he follows the other band members out of their shared room and down the halls. They turn a few corners and end up at the Grand Stairwell that Kyungsoo had only heard about in the newspapers. As Kyungsoo walked across the white floors decorated with black designs, his eyes were trained on the grandeur of the room. For the first time since he boarded the ship, he could truly understand why it was called the Ship of Dreams.

There were a number of wooden pillars strewn through the room to the support the upper floor, each of them were intricately carved to perfection. The stairwell itself lived up to its name. The dark wood stood out within the yellow lights and the stairwell was split into two pathways, in between them stood a black marble statue of a cherub. Each side of the stairwell split off into the floor above, spanning out like angel wings. The black accents underneath the wooden banisters were breathtaking and Kyungsoo couldn’t stop staring at the clock embedded into the wall. 

A tap on his shoulder gets his attention and he looks up to see William gesturing for him to follow. Flushing Kyungsoo does as he’s told and he tries not to attract any attention from any of the First Class passengers who seem like they could care less about them. If anything they’re too concerned with themselves, talking in groups as they ignore the band of musicians heading down another set of stairs towards the First Class dining saloon. 

The first thing Kyungsoo notices is the ceiling, it seemed to be just a plain white however beneath the paint there were patterns moulded there. It reminded him of embroidery almost, the way the curves danced around each of the chandeliers. Next he noticed how the flooring beneath his feet was now covered in a brown carpet, designs of yellow and red decorating it. The colours reminded him of Autumn. 

The tables were all reasonably sized, covered in pristine white tablecloths as well as the finest cutlery. The glasses and china seemed unused, everything seemed to twinkle underneath the bright lights. The chairs had wooden feet and armrests but the seats themselves were of a green faux leather it seemed. Kyungsoo didn’t find them comfortable but then again it wasn’t like he’d be the one sitting in them anyhow. 

The small stage with the grand piano was at the end of the dining saloon, Kyungsoo hadn’t been here before but the other band members dropped off their instruments during practice. Jared and William take their places first, Jared sits at the piano while William picks up his violin. Chanyeol follows afterwards, holding his guitar close before he signals for Kyungsoo to stand in front of the microphone stand. 

Of course Kyungsoo has to adjust it since it’d been set up too high but he makes himself comfortable, watching cautious as the passengers begin to find their seats. Chanyeol sets up the sheet music in front of him on a black stand and Kyungsoo sends him a grateful smile. Once everyone is in their seats Jared begins with the piano introduction. Kyungsoo notices how the low buzz of people talking doesn’t cease and he grits his teeth, wanting to wow them all. 

His hands were shaking and he was more than scared but this was the first step. This was what he left his home for. Kyungsoo furrows his brows and he does a small adlib, a gentle vocal run before he begins to sing.

 

“ _ Beautiful dreamer, wake unto me, _

_ Starlight and dewdrops are waiting for thee; _

_ Sounds of the rude world heard in the day, _

_ Lull’d by the moonlight have all pass’d a way! _ ”

 

Kyungsoo lets his voice trail off as he finishes the first stanza and he notices how everyone is looking at them. Some in awe, some in disinterest. However, so many eyes on him makes him nervous. Kyungsoo takes a deep breath and he tries to drown himself in the music so that he does not lose his place but then he sees him.

 

“ _ Beautiful dreamer, queen of my song, _

_ List while I woo thee with soft melody; _

_ Gone are the cares of life’s busy throng,- _

_ Beautiful dreamer, awake unto me! _

_ Beautiful dreamer, awake unto me! _ ”

 

A man sitting a few tables away is downright  _ staring _ at him. Now this wasn’t exactly odd considering Kyungsoo was singing at the moment and numerous people are staring at him however, this man’s gaze is heavy. He’s absolutely beautiful Kyungsoo notices, well as much as he can see with his blurred eyesight. The man has black hair that is styled to perfection, resembling a comma as the tips curl over his forehead.

His lips are pressed together and he occasionally sips on champagne, his tongue running over the flesh as he tastes the alcohol. His skin is golden. As if he’d spent the entirety of his childhood kissed by the sun, which was unusual to see in the First Class department. His features were sharp, strong as if he was crafted by the finest sculptor in the heavens. Kyungsoo looks away and he closes his eyes,

 

“ _ Beautiful dreamer, out on the sea _

_ Mermaids are chaunting the wild lorelie; _

_ Over the streamlet vapors are borne, _

_ Waiting to fade at the bright coming morn _ .”

 

As Kyungsoo opens his eyes once more he immediately meets dark but mesmerizing orbs. Those eyes seem to be saying something to him. Kyungsoo couldn’t place it and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to. He’d never encountered such a person before, if anything he’d been the one who made people flustered with his unconscious glares, it’d never been the other way around. This man looked at him like he was prey, Kyungsoo didn’t understand what it meant.

 

“ _ Beautiful dreamer, beam on my heart, _

_ E’en as the morn on the streamlet and sea; _

_ Then will all clouds of sorrow depart,- _

_ Beautiful dreamer, awake unto me! _

_ Beautiful dreamer, awake unto me! _ ”  
  


Kyungsoo finishes the song on a strongly vocal note and he’s pleased when he hears a small eruption of applause. They were being polite no doubt but at least they’d given him that. Kyungsoo startles when he hears a trumpet go off and the doors near the stairwell open. One by one waiters come pouring out, elegantly dressed while carrying silver platters. Kyungsoo turns around and he waves a goodbye to his band mates before he excuses himself.

He can feel the heavy gaze following him and he doesn’t want to turn back. But as he dodges the waiters and stays at least a metre away from any of the tables he can’t help but look over his shoulder. The man is already looking at him and Kyungsoo’s heart jumps when those sinfully plump lips stretch into a smirk, he raises his flute of champagne towards Kyungsoo who breaks into a run once he reaches the stairs.

Flustered he pays no attention to anyone around him as he loosens his bowtie and shoves it into the pocket of his blazer. His cheeks are ablaze and he feels humiliation seeping through his skin, no doubt that man had been mocking him. For what reason Kyungsoo did not know, perhaps it was his performance? Aside from the shakiness of some words due to his nervousness he felt that he did pretty well. He shakes his head and forgoes dinner tonight, heading straight down to the depths of the E Deck.

Kyungsoo knows that it’s way too early to sleep considering it wasn’t even 7PM yet but he was already so tired. He removes his suffocating suit and dresses in his usual brown dress shirt and khakis before he decides that he’ll take a walk. He takes his time heading from the E Deck back up to the observation deck and he prays that it’s empty. Everyone should be eating right now anyways.

He rushes up the stairs this time and he’s prepared for the rush of air. Kyungsoo exhales the breath he’d been holding and he’s shocked to see how dark the sky is already. Not that he minded, no not at all. Aside from the odd person occupying the benches to smoke, Kyungsoo was very much alone and he liked that a lot. He heads over to the same gate and his hands shiver when they touch the cold metal, the only other people around are on the other side of the ship and he likes the feeling of solitude. God knows he won’t have much of it cramped in a Third Class room on a crowded ship.

“You sing like an angel,” Kyungsoo whips his head around and he’s greeted by the same man who was the very reason for his distress. Now that he sees the man stood in all of his glory, Kyungsoo truly feels inferior. He’s tall, that was the first thing Kyungsoo notices. His legs are long and they seem to go on for miles in his fitted slacks. He looks expensive. Everything about him screamed First Class. He leans over the railing on the upper deck and Kyungsoo assumes that it must’ve been attached to the dining saloon somehow.

The man leaves after that. Not saying a word more as he leaves Kyungsoo alone on the deck. Kyungsoo’s jaw drops in disbelief when the door slams shut and he exhales shakily, his breath white as it vanishes into the night. 

**Author's Note:**

> Here are my sources for the lyrics: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47260/beautiful-dreamer-serenade  
> For the analysis: https://literarydevices.net/beautiful-dreamer/  
> And the song itself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4U1l5y2rkzA  
> This chapter wasn't the best not gonna lie, descriptions are definitely not my strong point


End file.
